Pain Management Services
Make an Appointment
Pain can greatly affect your life. Whether caused by injury, disease, or surgery, our goal is to help you find relief. We can:
- Reduce your pain
- Increase your comfort
- Improve how you function
- Help you manage daily activities
UVA Health's team of pain specialists use the latest, most advanced treatments to give you back your quality of life, independence, and comfort. Our board-certified doctors care for thousands of patients each year. We're dedicated to helping you using the newest techniques and to researching and testing new ways of treating your pain.
Services We Offer
- Pain management after surgery
- Pain management using medicines without opioids (multimodal and non-opioid pharmacotherapy)
- Pain psychology
- Hip, knee, foot, & ankle pain treatment
- Injections and procedures for pain relief (interventional therapies)
- Migraine and other headache treatment
- Neck & back pain management
- Pelvic pain management
- Peripheral nerve stimulation
- Intrathecal pump
The Practice of Mindfulness
Living with cancer, chronic disease, or comorbidity is not only taxing on the body but on the mind. Kim Penberthy, PhD, ABPP, speaks to her work in mindfulness-based therapies.
Watch VideoSo many people that I see have medical conditions, either diseases or pain or both. And they are suffering from psychological symptoms, in addition. For instance, the therapy we do might help their depression and also alleviate some of their pain. The other thing I found is often when I do therapy with someone it helps them be more compliant with their medical treatment. In the cancer center for instance many of the therapies are very onerous. They're very taxing. And so having someone to help support you and teach you coping skills to get through your chemotherapy, your radiation, can be very helpful. A lot of the work that I do is in the area of mindfulness. Mindfulness is a kind of state of being where you are intentionally in the present moment in a nonjudgmental way. And this has been found to be a very therapeutic place to be in terms of your frame of mind. A lot of the mindfulness-based therapies that I do help people achieve that state of mind so that they can then do additional things in a more effective way. We also know that mindfulness-based interventions are very effective for people with chronic pain in addition to other chronic disorders. It seems to very much help them cope in more effective ways and live their life so that they have a better quality of life.
Treatment Options for Pain
Pain Medications
We'll create a custom treatment plan for your pain. It may include:
- Combinations of medicines (multimodal treatment)
- Physical therapy
- Injections
We'll also partner with your primary care physician on your treatment plan to get you the best pain care.
Interventional Treatments and Targeted Therapies
We may use procedures that include advanced technology, like:
- Ultrasound
- Fluoroscopy
- Radiofrequency energy
You'll likely need sedation or to be put to sleep (anesthesia) during these procedures. But, they offer an easy, comfortable recovery.
Injections (Nerve Blocks)
A nerve block is an anti-inflammatory injection targeted toward a certain nerve or group of nerves. It works by “turning off” a pain signal coming from a specific location in your body or to decrease inflammation in that area. The doctor may use image guidance to place the needle in the right location so that you can receive maximum benefit from the injection. Nerve blocks usually take only minutes to administer. The injection will be administered with a syringe, much like what's used for a routine vaccination. You can get pain relief with:
- Epidural steroid injections for neck and back pain
- Spinal injections (medial branch blocks)
- Radiofrequency ablation
- Knee injections and ablation
- Pelvic injections
- Sacroiliac joint injections
- Peripheral nerve blocks
- Blocks for complex regional pain
- Injections for headache management
- Stomach pain injections (celiac plexus blocks)
Neuromodulation
If your pain doesn't get better with medicine, neuromodulation may help. It uses electricity or medicine to change how your nerves communicate with your brain. We offer:
- Spinal cord stimulation (small electrodes stop pain signals from getting to your brain)
- Spinal pain medicine pumps (intrathecal pump - puts pain medicine directly into your spine)
Pain & Mental Health
Our skilled mental health providers have special training in treating pain conditions using many techniques. You can learn to cope through self-regulation skills that include:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Breathing techniques
- Meditation
Your Pain Team
When you get care for your pain at UVA Health, you'll have access to a specially trained, expert team that includes:
- Pain management physicians
- Nurses and nurse practitioners
- Pain psychologists
- Clinical associates
- Radiologists and radiology technicians
Pain After Surgery
Our acute pain services can help you manage your concerns and pain from surgery. Before and after your surgery, we’ll:
- Listen to your concerns and partner with you on a personalized care plan
- Manage pain during your recovery
- Check in with you daily to make sure your pain is under control
- Help treat your pain after surgery, even if we didn’t perform the surgery
Shorter, Less Painful Recovery With ERAS
At UVA Health, we follow the Enhanced Recovery after Surgery guidelines (ERAS). This personalized recovery plan helps you recover with:
- Less time in the hospital
- Less opioid pain medications
Through education, multiple medicines, and proper hydration, we get you back on your feet and out of the hospital faster.
Types of Pain
You have acute pain if it:
- Begins suddenly
- Is caused by trauma, injury, or surgery
- Doesn’t last more than 6 months
- Disappears when the cause of the pain is treated
You have chronic pain if it:
- Comes from a disease or condition that you live with
- Occurs on a daily basis, over and over
- Is difficult to diagnose
- May take a long time to treat
Types of chronic pain include back pain, headache, arthritis, and cancer pain.